What television series do I need to start watching?

Oct 4, 2012 9:43 AM

So I am looking for some new TV programming to occupy some of my down time but I feel uninformed about newer programming. My wife and i just finished up the Weeds series. We watch Californication. LOST, Smallville, Sopranos, in the past. So what program am I missing out on? I see Dr Who mentioned quite a bit around the interwebs. Save me from Keeping up with the Kardashians and Dance Moms!

Top Answers

-Breaking Bad: Probably the best show ever made. Entertaining, suspenseful, morally challenging, and tremendously acted. A show that should not have ever been made (a show about making meth should not have found a mainstream audience), but a juggernaut that gets better with each season.

-Sherlock: PBS's reinvention of Sherlock Holmes, using source stories updated to modern times, is some of the best TV today. Mindbending, clever, fun. Acting and writing are awesome, and each 90-minute episode (there are only 6 total) is a masterpiece.

@cengland0: For some reason I almost always catch the last 5 minutes of that show... Need to remember to set the DVR. Those five minutes seem midly funny but without the rest of the program for context I know I'm missing the big picture.

Since you have Showtime, the current shows to watch would be Dexter and Homeland. If you can get previous seasons, it would help understand them. With Dexter, read the original book, Darkly Dreaming Dexter by Jeff Lindsay.

-Breaking Bad: Probably the best show ever made. Entertaining, suspenseful, morally challenging, and tremendously acted. A show that should not have ever been made (a show about making meth should not have found a mainstream audience), but a juggernaut that gets better with each season.

-Sherlock: PBS's reinvention of Sherlock Holmes, using source stories updated to modern times, is some of the best TV today. Mindbending, clever, fun. Acting and writing are awesome, and each 90-minute episode (there are only 6 total) is a masterpiece.

We don't subscribe to premium channels but have just started watching Boardwalk Empire on DVD from Netflix. Wow! I can't usually sit through several episodes in a row of any show but this is really good.

@dupedyetagain: Looks like I might be busy... Most of these are relatively established, right? I mean they are beyond their third or fourth season.... I know Thirty Rock is ending soon and I'll probably wait to pick it up the entire series on DVD

I was going to say Walking Dead but someone beat me to it. I didn't see Newsroom mentioned. It was a summer series so you'd need to track down back episodes. I love True Blood, but it isn't to everyone's tastes. Blue Bloods and The Good Wife provide solid storytelling. I have a huge TV viewing list, there are at least 30 shows that I follow. But a lot of my favorites like Haven, Supernatural, and Strike Back are just for fun. I am still waiting to be blown away by new series this year.

Dupedyetagain and I must have similar taste in tv. Love the PBS Sherlock series! Benedict Cumberbatch is a spot on modern Holmes.

Also love Downton Abbey first because of the storylines and second because of the time period, setting and costuming. It might require going back through the first two seasons to start watching season three and have it make sense though.

@jimmyd103: Yes, most are relatively established; Mad Men (5(?) seasons), Breaking Bad (5 seasons). 30 Rock (8, but started getting great about 5 eps in), Community (4), and Parks & Rec (5, but seriously don't watch season 1, which even its creators acknowledge sucked) end this year on half-season orders (NBC announced that it is cutting these genius shows in order to, unfortunately, "broaden" its comedy and audience. Its new "broad" comedies debuting this fall are predictably horrendous).

However, Sherlock (BBC, not PBS!) is only six 90-minute episodes total. Downton Abbey also is only two seasons, a total of less than 20 episodes.

I would recommend thinking of what your ideal type of show is, and trying a few episodes of all that seem to match in this forum. Only finish those you like; you'll know quickly whether any of these shows are your speed.

I almost mentioned Sons of Anarchy, but like True Blood, it's definitely something you have to have the stomach for. Didn't think of Justified, but it's a good one. Just writing now to add Hell on Wheels if you like westerns. It's a good story in a genre we don't see a lot of anymore, and beautifully shot. I also quite enjoyed Longmire over the summer. It's a cop show of a different breed, with richly textured characters. I've only seen one episode so far of Vegas, but Dennis Quaid's character reminds me of Longmire, and the show looks like it may be a winner.

Alphas: If you liked what Heroes tried to do, then this show pays off in episode one. Regular people with superpowers working as a team to take down other people with superpowers. Be careful this show is addictive.Lost Girl: If you liked Buffy. This show is about the Fae. The main character's power is to feed off life energy. Dark Faerie and Light Faerie both fight to get her to join their respective side, but SHES HER OWN WOMAN.Portlandia: Mr. Show is the closest relative to this show, fun for kids to watch, lots of goofy humor.Revenge: Office favorite.

@davidschronic: No Dexter love for the pathetic reason that I have yet to see it (with a few exceptions, if it's not on Netflix or Hulu, I probably haven't seen it--though I've seen all of Curb, Sopranos, Weeds, US of Tara). But everyone tells me Dexter is terrific. I did see the pilot and thought it was great.

As far as "best _ ever," just depends on what you like. I can't remember any other show with so clear a vision as to its visual style, philosophy, and sense of purpose. It is in turns exciting, unbearably suspenseful, entertaining, complex, scary, thought-provoking, intelligent, funny, and heartbreaking.

@jimmyd103: Good choice. Revolution is decent. Notice I didn't say fantastic or wonderful, just decent compared to what's out there. I'm disabled and end up with many sleepless nights and a close to max DVR. Thank goodness for On Demand.

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